9 best reasons to work in Milan (at Empatica!)
Imagine that you have been working at your job for a while. You like what you do and your coworkers, but you are thinking about a change. Would you be up to the challenge and the excitement of starting somewhere new and - why not - moving to another city? What about another country? If you are considering these points and would like to work for a company that builds technology to help improve people’s lives, Empatica may be the right place for you.
We are a young, vibrant company operating with a hybrid working model, meaning our employees can choose to work from home, or from one of our offices in Milan, Italy; Boston, United States; or Seoul, Korea. Many of our Product and Operational roles are in Europe, so some of our remote colleagues contribute to their teams from their various locations but come to the Milan office every once in a while to meet physically with other team members, while others live in the city. The choice is yours!
One of our Data Scientists, Rafael, who only recently relocated to Milan from Madrid has this to say about the city:
“Milan has so much to offer: it’s a very vibrant city where you can enjoy the authentic Italian vibes: the aperitivo in Navigli, the hip scene in Isola, the high-brow arts scene in Teatro Alla Scala and the museums. At the same time, it's a very cosmopolitan and international city where you can find all sorts of stuff from all corners of the world. You’re also super close to the lakes and mountains which are super beautiful if you’re into nature. Besides that it's an extremely connected city: both domestically as well as internationally.”
Perhaps Rafael’s statement caught your attention? Well, there’s more. So whether you prefer working onsite with a full immersion into the culture of the city, or you’d rather work from the comfort of your home with the occasional visit to the office, these are the 9 best reasons to consider Milan, Italy as your next home.
1. Easily travel within Italy, Europe, and the world with the multiple airports and train connections
Milan has three airports: Milan Linate (LIN), Milan Malpensa (MXP), and Milan Bergamo-Orio al Serio (BGY). The closest airport is Linate, which is about 8 km from downtown Milan, and the others are about 40-50 km away. With all of these airports, you can find cheap, international flights within Europe for weekend trips and also direct connections for longer intercontinental flights.
Milan is also well connected to other major Italian cities, such as Rome, Venice, and Florence, with high-speed trains. You can get to Rome in 3 hours!
2. Live in a stimulating and cosmopolitan European city
At Empatica, we work hard, but we also enjoy spending our free time together in different activities outside of the office. Being in Milan, there is never a dull moment, so you can always find something to do. The city boasts a variety of art and history museums, exhibitions, and events. It is also a hub for concerts; if you don’t want to miss a major artist or band touring throughout Europe, they’ll probably stop in Milan. The Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Killers, Muse, Beyonce, Jay Z, and Coldplay are just a few who have done concerts here.
Aside from concerts, there are many music-oriented events to look forward to such as Piano City, if you love piano music of different genres, or the Jazz Festival if you’re more inclined to jazz. Similarly, there is the Design Week every April, which is mostly focused on design in architecture and furniture and sees people come over from all corners of Europe to attend the multiple events of the Fuorisalone (which mostly take place near our office).
Sports enthusiasts are not left out. If you like winter sports (and can wait a few years), Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo will host the February 2026 Winter Olympics (this will certainly be a must-see event!). There are also soccer games in San Siro, where you can perhaps catch your favorite team playing, and basketball games, with the Armani team in Milan being one of the strongest in Italy. The ATP Tennis finals are also happening in Turin this November, and you can easily hop on a 1-hour train from Milan to see it!
3. Rich expat/international community
Milan is home to a lot of big brands and also the home of fashion, so it has a nice mix of expats and international students and workers, alongside the locals. You can find lots of meetups for language exchanges or more specific topics such as data science.
Empatica alone has more than 20 nationalities in one office, so you’ll have lots of international colleagues to mingle and share ideas with! We are actively seeking to create and maintain this multinational environment, which brings talent and experiences from across the world to create a dynamic atmosphere to work in.
4. The variety of international and Italian restaurants is a foodie’s dream come true
In Milan, you can find any sort of cuisine: Chinese, Japanese, Eritrean, Mexican, Swedish, American, Filipino, and much more. And if haute cuisine is your preference, the Milan region also boasts 56 Michelin-starred restaurants.
Of course, being in Italy, you can find restaurants that feature the most famous Italian food of each region. There’s much more than just pizza and pasta! Oddly enough, Milan also has the best seafood in all of Italy, so be sure to make a reservation to eat some seafood when you come.
We appreciate high-quality food here in the office too; one of the benefits of working at Empatica is free healthy lunch every day (and an abundance of treats brought in by one of our colleagues at least once a week)!
5. There are many green transportation options to move around the city without a car
Milan has an extensive network of transportation with the subway (metro), trains, trams, and buses. The cost of one ticket is 2€, which is relatively inexpensive compared to almost 5£ in London. If you live near a subway stop, you can get around easily. There are also shareable bikes, scooters, and cars available if you don’t want to buy your own.
Despite being one of the major Italian cities, Milan is also quite accessible to cross on foot! The diameter of the main road delimiting the city center (locals call it the “Circonvalla”) is only 7km wide, and walking from the office to the Duomo, for example, will take about 35 mins, with plenty of wonderful shops and bars along the way.
Many of the neighboring cities are also very accessible by train. Cities like Pavia, Monza, Bergamo, Brescia, even Como are a very short train ride away.
6. It’s the fashion capital of the world
Milan is one of the major fashion capitals of the world, occasionally outranking New York and Paris. Most of the renowned fashion brands, Italian and otherwise, have their offices, showrooms, and laboratories in Milan and some of these are even on the same street as our office.
Milan is also the host of some major international fashion events, like the Milan Fashion Week, happening twice a year during February and September. During this time it is common to come across crowds of models and fashion icons in the city, and if you’re lucky, you can even find and gain access to the major parties and runway shows going on all around the city.
7. Experience the Italian culture
If you have always seen the Italian culture from afar and wondered what it’s like to experience it first-hand, then working in Milan will give you an opportunity to do so. Although Milan is much more international than other parts of Italy, the locals are always ready to assimilate you into their rich culture.
The Empatica culture is all about caring, so we go beyond just being colleagues, ensuring that any new starters get their own taste of the city once they’ve joined. We’ll take you out for an “aperitivo” (which has its roots in Milan) similar to a “happy hour”, and our Italian colleagues will show you their hand gestures to convey different meanings when speaking. Walking around, you’ll get to admire the unique architecture and street art.
Drinking coffee like an Italian is a skill to master. Thankfully, Italy is known for its coffee culture, and around every corner, you’ll find a coffee bar. The rich taste of Italian coffee, for some, is enough motivation to work in Italy, where coffee just tastes different and you can’t have enough of it!
Here in the office, we have an espresso machine with a never-ending supply of free Italian coffee. There are also cookies available for dunking. Be careful to not get the jitters from all of the caffeine.
8. Great tourism and activities nearby
There are so many great activities to do in your free time around Milan. The city is surrounded by mountains, and beautiful lakes such as Lake Como and Lake Garda are close by.
If you’re adventurous, it’s easy to pack a bag for the weekend and go hiking or skiing in the mountains. On the other hand, if you’re more inclined to water, you can go swimming in the lakes. If you are interested in going to the sea, you can get to the region of Liguria by train, bus, or car in a few hours. One of the most unique parts of Liguria is Cinque Terre, a UNESCO World Heritage List. There are five picturesque towns on cliffs by the water where you can hike or take a train between them.
There are other fun seasonal activities to look forward to, such as the Christmas markets in nearby towns in the winter and “Carnevale”, or Carnival parties, at the start of spring like the huge annual Carnival of Venice.
9. You can finally learn Italian!
What better way is there to learn a language than in the environment where it is being spoken? Even though our main language at Empatica is English, living in Milan means you can finally add another language feather to your hat by learning to speak Italian! Even better, there are many free Italian language courses for expats organized by different municipalities in Milan to make learning easier. So you’d really have no excuse not to make your dream of learning Italian come through.
Have we convinced you yet?
Well, you don’t have to take our word for it. We asked one of our lovely Customer Happiness Specialists, Olga, who also recently relocated to Milan what she liked most about her move, and here’s what she says:
“I’ve only visited Milan a few times briefly before moving here to join Empatica, but I’ve always had a feeling it would be an amazing place to live, and I must say that so far I’m loving my new Milanese life! Whatever you are interested in or passionate about, Milan will have something to offer - whether it’s exhibitions, cute little vintage shops, exciting nightlife, theatre and opera, fashion, gastronomy, and so much more. Definitely, never a boring day here!
I also love how it’s not that big of a city and you can move around with ease, but at the same time, you get that big-city cosmopolitan kind of vibe from people and places here. But, if I had to choose my favorite thing about the move, it would by far be joining the coolest and the friendliest team I’ve ever worked with (and the delicious free lunches in the office, of course)!”
Join our team
We are rapidly expanding, so we are always looking for the best and brightest talent to join our team. If you are convinced that Milan could be your next move, head over to our Careers page to see the open positions. Before applying, learn more about working at Empatica by reading our blog post: What’s it like working at Empatica?
We hope to see you soon for an aperitivo!